


Viggo's Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Days

by All_Might_Ships_EraserMic



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Bad Decisions, Constructive Criticism Welcome, Gen, Illnesses, Injury, Original Character(s), Pain, Vomiting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-02
Updated: 2019-08-02
Packaged: 2019-09-05 08:36:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 32
Words: 16,991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16807177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/All_Might_Ships_EraserMic/pseuds/All_Might_Ships_EraserMic
Summary: This was originally a request fill on wattpad and I've expanded it. I just made an account on here so here it is: Viggo has awful luck and each of these parts focuses on something happening to him, whether it be broken limbs, the flu, or a near death experience. Feedback is very appreciated :D*I do not own httyd or its characters, just my work. thanks!*





	1. Stabbed

Viggo’s terrible week started in a trader market, where he was docked while his men resupplied the ship. It was in a large village with plenty of dark alleyways to get mugged in, and perhaps he shouldn’t have been quite so confident. 

“Give me your money or I’ll slit your throat” a rough voice, obviously disguised, demanded from behind Viggo. The dragon hunter had sent away his guards, wanting some time alone, and it seemed that the brief whim was backfiring. Still, Vigo laughed, feeling the tip of the attacker’s knife trembling against his back.

“Let me guess- this is your first robbery. Am I correct?” The thief said nothing and Viggo took it as a yes. “I am the great dragon hunter Viggo Grimborn, and if you know what’s good for you this robbery will end now. I might not even kill you.”

The robber hesitated, and Viggo thought he might actually listen. But then he growled, “Can’t say I know the name.” In an instant his knife was buried in Viggo’s shoulder, the robber running in the opposite direction and around a corner, allowing Vigo to only catch a flash of blond hair.

Viggo winced and yanked out the knife, groaning as his blood soaked into the light leather armor he was wearing. The cut was only a couple inches deep and he could still move his arm, so the armor had likely saved him from a serious injury, but it was still frustrating to soil new armor out of combat. 

The dragon hunter noted that the knife was a decent one and pocketed it, trudging through the alley in the hopes that he could get back to the ship and quietly take care of this before his crew noticed. As for the idiot who chickened out of taking his purse- well, he had a man for that.

*The rest will be longer I promise XD have fun reading!*


	2. Kidnapped

“An’ I want two whole tons a silver also, got that? Or you ain’t gonna see ta soldier ever ‘gain. Kay, now send dat to Viggo’s ship.” 

Viggo grimborn cringed at the man’s idiocy, starting to worry that he might actually be dull enough to go through with his idiotic plan. Viggo had spent the day tied to a chair with a thin sack over his head after being drugged by a barkeep the night before, and needless to say, it had been an awful day so far.

The barkeep had thought that Viggo was a sailor on his ship, not the captain himself, and thought that he could squeeze out a ransom for him. But Viggo knew that the only one in charge on the ship at the moment was his brother Ryker, and he doubted that he would pay such a large ransom for him, even if he figured out who had really been kidnapped- if he had, he would probably celebrate and pay the barkeep to kill Viggo instead of returning him. 

“Release me now and I won’t have my me- my friends kill you. You’re an idiot if you think you will get any money off of me.” The barkeep huffed and took a long swallow of beer. “Nah, I think ya lyin’. Ya look like someone real important.” Viggo rolled his eyes, thinking you have no idea.

Ryker’s figure appeared in the doorway, grinning and flanked by two guards. Viggo relaxed slightly; if his brother had bothered to show up himself, he was probably thinking this was hilarious and wasn’t strategizing.

Protecting his prize, the barkeep moved close to Viggo, aiming a knife at the dragon hunter’s throat. Finally, an opportunity! Viggo seized the knife in his teeth and yanked it backward, causing it to rip out of the barkeep’s hands. Ryker’s guards sprang into action, leaping onto the now unarmed bar keep with savage grins while Viggo cut himself free. 

“Well, he was disappointing.” Viggo stood, brushing himself off and stepping delicately over the barkeep’s groaning form on the floor. “I was hoping for a little more of a game, but I suppose not everything works out well.”

Ryker groaned, shaking his head. “Why did I even come for you?” Viggo grinned maliciously, gripping his brother’s arm for a long moment. “Because you need me, and you know it.”


	3. Sick

Viggo Grimborn, leader of the dragon hunters and one of the most powerful men in the world, was struck down, lying in bed. It wasn’t from a battle wound, or a dragon’s fire- no, it was only the flu. 

The illness had made its appearance the day before and Viggo had tried to shrug it off, only to collapse off of his dragon in the middle of a battle. Embarrassing, but it would have been manageable if only he didn’t feel even worse now. 

Viggo was almost asleep when his stomach lurched, forcing him to stumble out of bed and to the waste container in the corner. Heaving for what seemed like an eternity, Viggo was dismayed to see it had done nothing but bring up some bile and make his throat ache. 

Perhaps he would be lucky and this would be one of those twenty-four hour things. Viggo knew his body was strong, so it was ridiculous to be laid up by such a silly thing as illness, especially something so mundane as the flu. 

With this thought, Viggo decided to head back on deck and show him men a strong face- if he was incapacitated too long some of his men who actually had some backbone might begin to whisper about taking matters into their own hands. 

The dragon hunter pushed himself to his feet, cringing when his knees buckled and slammed against the deck. Growling, the viking forced himself to his feet and struggled to the door, leaning against it with his eyes closed. 

No! Viggo shook himself, refusing to give in to sleep. Nobody’s ever said a leader is entitled to rest, and they never will. Viggo cleared his throat, stepping through the door and shouting, “Look lively boys!” The men jumped and busied themselves with their work, nobody daring to comment on how awful Viggo still looked. 

It was going to feel like crap, but Viggo wasn’t a man to lay around while he had something important to do. So he stood on the deck, ignoring his weaknesses once again.


	4. Bitten

Viggo stood in a tree, legs braced on its branches, hands gripping a spyglass. A herd of terrible terrors lounged on the rocks below, most sleeping but a few sat half-awake. There must have been over twenty of them, but Viggo knew his men could capture them easily. The only reason he was even going after such small fry was because terrible terror venom, once extracted, was incredibly valuable. Viggo was in a good mood, and he thought to himself that he might give one to Ryker as a pet afterwards- his brother always did like the smaller dragons.

The first few went down with little trouble, but the fourth managed to sound a shriek of warning to its fellows, and within a second it was chaos. “Shhhqqquueeeaaakkkk!” A terror squaked right in Viggo’s face and he slapped at it, ears ringing. The dragon hunter stumbled backward, tripping over a log. Before he could get to his feet, the tiny dragon crawled up his pant leg. “Oh no no no! Get out of there!”

Viggo stabbed at the dragon as it crawled further and further up, striking it just as it reached a rather sensitive area. Unfortunately for Viggo, it wasn’t a fatal blow and the terrible terror sank its teeth into Viggo’s sensitive flesh. “Ahhhhh!” He stabbed it again and the dragon shimmied out of his pants and flew away, but the damage was done. Viggo backed out of the battle and waved in more of his men, cringing at the blood already seeping into the crotch of his pants in a large pool. It ran down his legs, making his pants stick to his skin. 

As much as he hated leaving before a job was done, Viggo needed to look at this in private- no pun intended. None of his men had seen the injury, and he wanted to keep it that way. While half-hidden behind some bushes, Viggo signaled to his second in command to wrap up the capture and bring the terrible terrors back to the ship while he beat a hasty retreat. 

Back in his quarters, Viggo peeled back his pants, stifling a groan. It was a nasty bite, and the venom would be a pain to deal with, but Viggo had been relatively lucky- the terrible terror had missed his jewels by less than an inch, and the area around the bite was already swelled and pink. 

The venom of a terrible terror also caused an infection in the areas surrounding it, which would be quite the problem in Viggo’s case if he didn’t treat it early. Pulling on a fresh pair of pants, Viggo made his way to the ship’s infirmary, meeting the tired woman at the counter with what he hoped to be a confident smile. 

“I have a soldier who was bitten by a terrible terror today, in a rather delicate area. Could I-” The healer nodded, grinning with a strange gleam in her eye. She disappeared into the healing room and came back with a small pot of salve, which she shoved across the counter along with a leather packet. “The salve needs to be applied to the bite and any swollen areas, and the packet contains medication to be swallowed once per day.” 

Viggo thanked her and turned to leave, but right before he closed the door behind him he heard her say, “Make sure to keep using the salve until it is gone, not stopping when you start to feel better, or it might not work completely.” Viggo spluttered, “It’s not for me!” and the healer laughed softly, shaking her head. “Of course it isn’t. Good day sir.” Viggo left, cheeks flushed, embarrassed at how easily she had seen through him. Still, he had what he needed, and all that was left to do was lay down and take his medicine.


	5. Torture

Viggo Grimborn stood over Dagur’s panting form, a huge smile on his face. “Come now, surely you’ve had enough fun for the day? You only have to tell me where Hiccup is hiding.” Dagur spat at his feet and Viggo’s grin vanished. 

“Tell me why I chose to personally interrogate you.” Viggo gripped Dagur’s hair, forcing the berserker to look at him. “Don’t know don’t care, next question.” Viggo growled at Dagur’s rudeness and released his head before slapping him. “You will tell me what I need to know, or you will die. There is no other option.” 

Blood ran down Dagur’s skin from multiple wounds, and he only groaned when Viggo sank a knife into his arm, leaving it there as he waited for a reply. “There’s always a third option. Can’t you hear it?” Viggo paused, listening; they were deep in the ship, so there was no more noise than the footsteps of crewmen and the groan of the wood. “What are you talking-”

The world exploded, a shrieking night fury appearing in a giant hole in the side of Viggo’s ship. Hiccup entered, followed by Astrid and Heather, whose eyes widened when she saw Dagur’s injuries. “We just want Dagur. Give him to me and all of us will leave without destroying any more of your ships.”

Viggo grinned and raised his hands. “Fine. He’s all yours.” As soon as they took a step Viggo seized his knife and buried it in Dagur’s hip before retreating. 

Cursing his ill luck, Viggo lamented the loss of his favorite ship. Still, Hiccup stayed true to his word and didn’t destroy any others. Viggo still tried to shoot him down, but they escaped. To add insult to injury, Viggo saw that Dagur could still ride his dragon, meaning he hadn’t done as much damage as he’s wanted to. Still, the berserker swayed in his seat and flew close to Heather, who watched him closely. 

The day had gone badly, and Viggo hadn’t gotten the information- but now he didn’t need it- Hiccup was right in his sights, and he would soon be his.


	6. Drowned

Viggo grimborn was nothing if not proud, and he showed everyone a fearsome viking with no weaknesses. Naturally, nobody could ever know that the great Viggo couldn’t swim. Ryker knew, but that was an unfortunate necessity- besides, Ryker probably wouldn’t even remember something like that, or Viggo hoped he didn’t. 

It wasn’t just a weakness- for a viking, it was just plain embarrassing. What kind of self respecting viking couldn’t swim? It had never been a problem-up until now. Of course it was right in the middle of a fight against the dragon riders.

Astrid got in a lucky shot that knocked Viggo off of his dragon, and the hunter twisted himself, expecting to see a ship’s deck to roll off of. Instead his heart froze when he saw nothing but blue waters below. He hit the water feet first and sank, struggling wildly as the surface got farther and farther away.

Viggo’s vision went black, and he felt his body relax as it sank.

An explosion of pain in Viggo’s chest made him sit up suddenly, twisting to the side and throwing up until he felt shaky and hollow inside. Water streamed down his face, and the tough viking continued to cough, panic feeling like a vice on his heart. Someone was smacking his back to force more water out, and as the coughing slowly ceased Viggo sat back, breathing hard.

Someone shook him, and Viggo opened his eyes to see Ryker standing before him, eyes wide with fear. “Viggo! Viggo, wake up!” When Ryker realized Viggo’s eyes were open he lay him back quickly, making Viggo’s head spin. “You were dead. One of the soldiers got you out, but I almost thought it would be too late. You were blue!” Viggo was surprised at how upset Ryker looked, and how much his chest ached from the ordeal. Viggo shakily reached out and grasped Ryker’s shoulder comfortingly, a small smile on his face.

Later, Ryker was eating in the ship’s galley after getting Viggo to his rooms, and he overheard two crewmen talking. “Why didn’t he just swim? It wasn’t that long a fall. Kinda sissy if you ask me.” The other crewman was about to add his own opinion when his face froze in fear. “What? What is it?” The first man turned to see Ryker standing right behind him, furious. 

“Disrespecting our leader? I believe that counts as treason.” Ryker pressed a blade against the base of the man’s neck, only deep enough to hurt and bleed a little, while the other man looked on in horror. “If I hear anything like that ever again, rest assured- I will see how well you can swim- with cannonballs tied to your legs.”


	7. Broken Leg

Whose idea was this? Oh yeah, Viggo’s. The viking had wanted to explore some never-before seen mountains on a previously undiscovered island, but it was far more damp, cold, and miserable than he had expected. All that Viggo wanted now was to get back to his ship and his dragons, who had been left behind besides a few medium sized ones needed for supplies. 

Even so, Viggo wasn’t one to give up. He put up with the constant rain and ignored how slick and muddy the ground was getting, as well as how his men grumbled, determined to finish the island survey. After all, the group was almost done, with only one last mountain trail to explore for water sources and geography.

In the end Viggo decided to send a majority of his men back to the ship with the camp supply, leaving only himself, Ryker, and a couple of soldiers to explore the trail before leaving. Eager to get his task over with and go home, Viggo walked in front of the others, failing to notice the way the trail was was getting more and more treacherous in the never ending rain.

Halfway down the trail, the mud turned slippery under Viggo’s boots and he fell on his back with an undignified squeak. Pain shot up Viggo’s left leg and the viking groaned when he saw the twisted angle that the limb lay at. 

Ryker was beside him in an instant, cutting Viggo’s pant leg off above the knee and looking at the obviously broken leg. “There’s some sharp rocks under the mud here, your boot must have caught in them and twisted your leg.” 

The injured leg leg was already starting to swell by the time the soldiers had found sticks long enough to splint it with- Viggo had refused to be carried like some sort of helpless child. Strips were cut from Viggo’s pant leg and used to bind the viking’s leg to the sticks, holding it as still as possible until it would be properly set and immobilized back on his ship. The makeshift splint was quickly soaked in blood, and Viggo tried not to focus on the piece of bone almost sticking through his skin, surrounded by deep cuts. 

Even while leaning on Ryker, the trip back was slow and agonizing. Viggo struggled to breath, feeling each step like a knife blade striking his entire body from his left leg up. Finally, even the proud viking leader had to admit that he was making almost no progress. He sent the guards on ahead and explained to Ryker, “As much as I hate to admit it, this isn’t working. I need you to carry me until just before we reach the ship, and I’ll walk from there.”

Ryker nodded and scooped up his brother as gently as he could, although it still drew a gasp of pain from Viggo as the action jostled his leg. Ryker knew that his younger sibling always avoided showing weakness in front of others, so he must be in agony if he was allowing even this. The bigger viking had hated watching Viggo walk even the short distance after his fall, trying not to think of the damage he was causing himself; now Ryker was thankful that his brother was seeing at least some reason and putting himself a little bit before his pride. Even so, walking up the gangway to his ship was going to be nearly impossible.

As soon as the ship was in sight Viggo struggled out of Ryker’s hold but kept one arm around his big brother’s shoulders to keep his weight off of his bad leg. The pair slowly but steadily made their way onto the ship and into the medical bay, and once he was away from everyone except Ryker and the healer Viggo let his strong mask slip, revealing his true exhaustion. 

Ryker held Viggo’s trembling form as still as he could while the healer examined his leg. She finally stopped and explained that she would have to do some minor surgery to reset the bone that had come close to breaking through Viggo’s skin, as well as stitching the many cuts. Other than that, the break wasn’t horrible and could be set quickly, although it would be awhile before Viggo could walk on that leg again.

A few hours later Viggo was back in his chambers, leg set and firmly casted, feeling no pain due to having received a large dose of medicine on top of the anesthesia used in the surgery. A side effect was that Viggo was pretty loopy; Ryker was sitting with him to make sure he didn’t hurt himself while Viggo laughed and said strange things. 

“Ryker. Brother. Brother broth….er.”

“Yes?”

“You’re a good guy. I’m kinda bad sometimes but you’ve always been there.” Viggo grinned and wiggled a hand at Ryker, who blinked in surprise. “Er- thanks. I’ll always be here, you know that.”

Viggo’s eyes were closing, the sleepy effects of the medicine finally taking over. “Thanks. I don’t think I ever thanked you, but thanks… stay with me.”

Ryker waited until Viggo was sound asleep before drawing a blanket over him, smiling faintly. Viggo was never an affectionate or open person, it just wasn’t in his nature, so hearing him say such uncharacteristic things was sweet, if a little strange. Ryker adjusted the blanket one last time, then tried to find a comfortable position in the chair beside his brother. Viggo wanted him to stay, so stay he would, as long as he needed to.


	8. Captured

Viggo laughed when Dagur entered the room, watching the redhead fiddle with a blade in a sheath on his side. “Hiccup sent you in because he doesn’t have the guts for what has to be done, does he? He knows you do, he knows that you’ve tortured, killed before. That you’ll do it again- that you like it.” The knife zoomed across the room, thudding into the wood millimeters from Viggo’s face. 

Dagur’s outstretched hand shook and he quickly lowered it, glaring at Viggo. “I won’t argue with you. Hiccup needs to know where you’ve hidden your dragon eye lenses. You can simply tell me where they are hidden and this will all be over; anything that I do to loosen your tongue will be your own fault.”

“Just keep telling yourself that, if it makes you feel better.” Viggo laughed, and he didn’t see Dagur’s fist until it had connected with his cheekbone. The stocky viking groaned and spat blood from where his teeth had clipped through his tongue at the fist’s impact. “This is getting festive now, isn’t it? What are you going to do next, punch me in the stomach, cut me perhaps?” 

It was Dagur’s turn to smile now, and Viggo found his bravado shrinking just a little at the intensity in the other man’s eyes. Still, Viggo was bored; Ryker would come for him at any moment, so all that the dragon hunter could do to pass the time was annoy Dagur- even if he was getting just a little intimidating, the berserker was still a dumb little dog. 

“Actually, I was thinking something a little more fun. I mean, that’s what this is for you, so I wouldn’t want to ruin the party.” Dagur moved so that Dagur couldn’t see him, although he could hear a metallic scraping that made his skin crawl. Then a huge club smashed down on his arm and Viggo gasped, refusing to give Dagur the pleasure of hearing him scream despite his agony. 

The limb was possibly broken, but Viggo was optimistic that it was only extremely bruised. “Now, the lenses?” Viggo laughed again, finding it somehow funny that there was blood running down his chin. Boy, he must look a mess. Even so, Viggo could hear someone approaching the room. 

Hiccup opened the door, eyes widening slightly when he saw the state Viggo was in. “We just got a message from Ryker, he wants to arrange a trade. He hasn’t said anything?” Dagur shook his head and tossed his club aside. “It sounds like we’ll get what we want anyway.”

When Hiccup had ducked out to prepare the others to fly, Dagur turned and seized Viggo’s chin, forcing him to look upwards. “You’re right about one thing- I did enjoy it. And you know what?” Dagur pulled Viggo closer, a wild grin stretching his face. “I really don’t know what I’d do to you if I wasn’t stopped.”

The redheaded berserker dropped Viggo’s head, letting it fall back against his chair. Dagur strode out of the room, and Viggo could see that his hands shook.


	9. Appendicitis

Viggo’s stomach had been aching all day, and he wished that it would have the decency of going away while he completed an important letter. The stomachache unfortunately had poor manners and chose to stay, but Viggo completed his letter and sent it off. It was a message to the chief of an island in the far south where Viggo was hoping to trade for some rare dragons, and a small stomach ache was not going to interfere. 

The pain had first become noticeable close to Viggo’s belly button, and since he had thrown up that morning the dragon hunter dismissed it as a small flu. His cramping stomach and fevered skin seemed to support this theory, so Viggo decided to ignore the illness in favor of his duties and simply go to bed a bit earlier that evening. 

The dragon hunter had done exactly that, but when he woke the next morning the pain was even worse. It had shifted to his right side, and when Viggo moved it sent waves of pain throughout his body, making him gasp. He still felt nauseous, so the stocky viking chose to forgo breakfast and instead focused on moving slowly as he dressed and went on deck to supervise his men. 

Pain continued to stab through his side throughout the day, but the only concession Viggo made to it was slipping a dragon-heated stone into his armor, which dulled the pain to a tolerable throb. By that evening the pain had actually faded to almost nothing, and Viggo managed to actually eat his evening meal with the rest of the crew. 

Sometime later that night, Viggo’s body decided that eating hadn’t been such a great plan after all, and he barely made it to the bathroom before heaving. The pain was many times worse than it had been before, radiating out as far as his upper thighs and chest. When the vomiting stopped Viggo forced himself to his feet, deciding that this was something he should try to simply walk off. He would join the night patrols for awhile and then go back to bed tomorrow, with the excuse that he was up all night to cover his real reason for sleeping during the day.

Up on deck, Viggo’s head felt fuzzy, and it seemed like everyone around him was screaming. “Stop yelling, I can hear you perfectly well!” The crewman Viggo was addressing stared at him blankly and said, “Are you feeling alright sir? None of us are shouting.” Another crewman had slipped away when he saw Viggo’s pale face, and Ryker was brought on deck just in time to see his brother slump to the ground.

Viggo woke slowly, finding himself in bed. Bandages swathed his middle, and the viking poked at them with a frown- had he been stabbed? He couldn’t remember much beyond deciding to go on deck for night patrol. A large hand suddenly slapped Viggo’s, and Ryker spoke, “Don’t touch those you idiot. Do you know what happened?”

Ryker’s eyes smoldered with anger when Viggo didn’t know, masking a deeper worry. “Your appendix burst and you fainted on deck- in front of everybody.” Viggo cringed in embarrassment. “You almost died brother, you would have if our ship’s healer hadn’t returned from her supply trip a day early. Seriously, what is it with you and refusing to take care of yourself?”

Knowing his brother was right, Viggo put a hand on Ryker’s arm. “I hate to say it, but I’m sorry. I thought it was only a stomach ache, and then it went away for awhile, so I… I simply refuse to look weak in front of them, although it seems that it backfired this once. I promise to take better care of myself next time alright?”

Ryker nodded, his gaze softening a little. “You better keep to your promise- or I’ll tell our fleet that your health is poor and that you need constant assistance.” Viggo’s face went dark red as Ryker went to fetch him some food, laughing hysterically as soon as he was out of the room, not caring if his brother heard or not.


	10. Chapter 10

The room was dim, but Viggo could still see himself in his personal mirror. His face was a mess, a mottled mass of burns sure to scar clustered around a blinded eye. The pain was dulled for now with several different potions, and while Viggo was feeling much better after several days of recovery after the incident, he hadn’t been able to bring himself to face his men yet. 

Viggo wasn’t a vain man, and a small part of him even saw the new scar as a something to be proud of- heck, something to brag about. People would whisper things like he survived falling into a volcano! He must be so strong!

Still, it was like an itch that try as he might, Viggo couldn’t scratch. He had never been beaten so badly in his life. Sure, there were several incidents that he would rather forget, and countless times when he had set out to achieve more than he managed to. But this? For the first time in Viggo’s life he had been not just defeated, but humiliated in the scale of his defeat, forced to retreat like a beaten dog with his tail between his legs.

Truthfully, Viggo had only survived because Ryker climbed down into the volcano and carried him out. Viggo hated owing anything to anyone, and being saved like a helpless little child had been the last straw.

Viggo stared at his face in the mirror, then grimaced at it, finding a spark of amusement in the strange way the burned side of his face failed to perfectly replicate the other half, likely as a result of damaged nerves. Perhaps he could use it to scare his men a bit, as childish as it was.

With this thought, Viggo smiled, then started to laugh, the first real laugh that he’d had in a long time. Still laughing, he left his rooms. After all, he was alive; and life carried the promise of another chance at defeating all who opposed him. 

*Sorry it ended up so short! I won't be able to post for awhile so I put out this bit. Thanks for reading!!*


	11. Allergies

Achoo!

Ryker twitched, then relaxed. This was the fourth time Viggo had sneezed in the last hour and it was starting to drive Ryker insane. The two brothers were in the hold of a ship belonging to one of their trading partners, a merchant of furs. Viggo had wanted to find some better cold resistant furs for a trip further north later in the year, but it seemed like perhaps it hadn’t been such a good idea. 

“Are you alright?”

“Shut up. I’m fine.” 

Ryker rolled his eyes. Sure Viggo was fine. People’s voices were supposed to be scratchy and raw, and their eyes were supposed to be red. Viggo sneezed again and Ryker’s hands tightened into fists, fighting the urge to drag his brother out of that ship and all the way to a healer. 

“This isn’t something that I’m going to let you brush off Viggo. You’re starting to wheeze. If you collapse in here I’m going to carry you back to our ship in my arms like a new bride.” Viggo snorted and it turned into a coughing fit that made him double over. “Fine. I may be allergic to these pelts. See where I’ve touched them?” Viggo pulled up his sleeves slightly to reveal angry, raised scarlet rashes all over his wrists and hands.

Sighing, Ryker came to a quick decision. “Go up on deck and ride your dragon back to the ship. Wash your hands and change your clothes, then get some salve- I have some under my bed that you can use. I’ll handle the purchase and have it stowed on a seperate ship. You should have shown me sooner, just get out of here before your throat swells up. Idiot.” 

To Ryker’s surprise, Viggo actually followed his orders. His hasty retreat told Ryker that he was likely much more uncomfortable than he had wanted to reveal, but at least he would be away from the furs. Ryker finished his inspection, paid for the furs, and made his own way back to the ship.

Once he arrived, Ryker found Viggo in his cabin, going over reports from his southern ships. The smell of salve was heavy in the air, and Ryker nodded when he saw the sheen of it across several areas of Viggo’s skin. 

“Feeling better?”

Viggo grunted, but Ryker saw a small smile on his face. 

“Next time you feel like that make an excuse. I’ll back you up, nobody ever needs to know. But you need to know that it could have been much worse. You could have stopped breathing, and not even our healer would have been able to help. Promise me that you won’t die from something that stupid.”

Viggo burst out laughing, surprising Ryker into grinning widely. “It would be a dumb way to die. Alright then, I promise.” The brothers then separated back to their normal duties, and for both, it would be a struggle not to laugh.


	12. Food Poisoning

Viggo frowned over a map, trying to focus on where his ships were among all of the geographical markers of the map. The task was made much harder by the cramping in his stomach. Ryker hadn’t been feeling well that day either, and now that Viggo thought about it, most of the crew had seemed tetchy that day too.

Ryker sat in the opposite corner, one hand straying to his stomach every so often. “Hey, have you been sick today? Half the crew is laid up and I haven’t been feeling so good. Maybe it was that fish we had yesterday, it smelled a bit off.” 

About to deny any sickness, Viggo changed his mind and leaned over his wastebasket instead, retching. “Perhaps I have been a bit ill. I can still work perfectly well though.” 

“If you’re feeling anything like me and the crew, I would say no to that. Just rest- you can’t do much with the crew being sick anyway.” Viggo shrugged, but didn’t protest, so Ryker went back to his own cabin to try and sleep off his aching stomach.

Naturally, the most relaxing thing Viggo could think of was not sleeping, not reading a book, but putting one of his terrible terrors through training exercises. Ryker came in two hours later to find his brother curled up in the corner, asleep, with two of his dragons licking his face and looking as though they were considering eating the sleeping viking.

Instead of waking Viggo, Ryker decided to try carrying him back to his bunk. The younger grimborn was far too hot for his liking, and when Ryker picked him up there was no resistance. Thankfully by this point the crew had been ordered to their quarters, so nobody saw their fearsome leader being carried bridal style to his room. 

Ryker laid Viggo his bed and found a pitcher of water in the corner, with a rag for spills. Ryker dipped the rag into the water and wrung it out before placing it on his brother’s forehead, frowning. 

Viggo’s eyes opened, but they were glassy with fever and he didn’t speak, seemingly confused with finding himself back in bed. When he did open his mouth, Ryker barely got a basin in front of him in time. The retching brought up nothing, but Ryker was glad that he had recovered enough to care for his much sicker sibling. 

“Too… too hot. Stop. Hot.”

Viggo sluggishly kicked his blankets off sometime later, and Ryker replaced them with wet cloths. The one on his forehead hadn’t done anything so Ryker had tried to make him sweat it out, but that had seemed to make it worse. Ryker was now resorting to using damp rags all over Viggo’s body, which seemed to help a little bit more. Viggo still wasn’t coherent, which was worrying, but their personal healer was sick as well. She had promised to come as soon as she could, and Ryker was doing his best not to be impatient. 

“I like… dragons.”

“Yes, you do. We hunt them, remember?”

“Hmm. I wanna fly.”

“Let’s do that when you’re feeling better, alright?”

“Heh, fly. Not flies, dragons.”

“Yes.”

Fever-loopy Viggo was proving to be rather fun, but Ryker would be relieved when he was better and talking sense again. The only thing that he was getting right now was that Viggo really, really liked dragons. Endearing as it was, Ryker needed him. So he waited for the healer, and continued replacing the rags. 

“Ryker?”

“Yes?”

“I like… dragons.”

*Loopy Viggo! XD I know I've done it before but I love it. Thanks for reading, there will be more to come whenever I have time to write :D*


	13. Stone

“You need surgery, as soon as possible.”

“There’s no other option? I would prefer not to be out of commission for a few days.”

“Try a few weeks, possibly over a month. And no, there’s no other options, unless you want further complications.”

Viggo groaned and rubbed his thumbs into his eyes, irritated, pain-wracked, and generally having a miserable day. The issue at hand? A freaking bladder stone. 

“Fine. Can you do it tomorrow? I just want this over with.” The healer nodded with a smile. “I can have your brother take over your duties until you are recovered.”

The last few months for Viggo had been agony. But considering that the pain was in some rather private bits, he had tried to keep it a secret- until his personal healer had insisted on a physical. Her name was Ola, and somehow, her steely gray eyes could drag any truth out of Viggo. Dang, it felt like being interrogated by his mother. 

Still, maybe telling Ola and having the surgery was for the best. Viggo’s stomach and lower bits had ached constantly, making him unable to ride his dragon. Ryker had the same problems a few years previously and had gone away to have the surgery, but somehow Viggo had never made the connection. 

The next morning, Ryker left to take care of Viggo’s duties. The younger brother waited nervously as Ola explained the surgery, cursing himself for his weak feelings. Still, it wasn’t like there was no reason for Viggo to be so worried- vikings had no anesthetic, and many people died under a surgeon’s blade. Viggo trusted Ola- she kept her instruments clean and worked fast- but it would likely still be the worst torture of Viggo’s life.

Ola forced several cups of various spirits and potions down Viggo’s throat, making him feel dizzy and sick- he hadn’t eaten that morning on her orders, and the drink settled uneasily in his empty stomach. Then she guided Viggo to a flat pallet laid across a table, tying his limbs down. “My apologies, I can’t have you hitting me when I stick a knife in your backside.”

Viggo chuckled at that, but it turned into a gasp when she made the first cut. Ola went quickly, but Viggo still shivered and jerked, even with the numbing of the alcohol mixture. “Almost done sir, almost done. I’m almost to the stone, it’ll be out soon.”

The wiry viking could feel blood running down each side of his back, groaning at the intensifying pain. Ola patted his shoulder before cutting even deeper, making Viggo scream into his gag. “You should have passed out before this. Feeling dizzy at all?”

Viggo tried to nod and his head spun. The healer smiled gently and continued to work, recognizing the dizziness in her boss’s eyes. “Just close your eyes, drift away…” Once the viking was unconscious, Ola finished as quickly as she could, sealing the wound with a red-hot iron. 

Ryker was waiting outside the room, and he blanched at her red-stained hands. Ola showed him the large stone with a grin. “He didn’t lose too much blood, I think he’ll be alright. Want to sit with him?”

Ryker nodded and hurried past her, quickly thanking her with a shaky smile. Ola watched him go, before closing the door to give him some privacy as Viggo slowly made his way back to wakefulness.


	14. Toothache

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As requested, here's the toothache chapter! :D

Ryker massaged his jaw, frowning at the dragon in the cage. Personally, he thought it was hideous- neon green, with bulging eyes and stunted wings- but Viggo liked it, so they would buy it. Apparently its blood had some sort of restorative property, so perhaps that excused its ugliness.

Besides the ugly dragon, Ryker had another issue- his jaw had been aching all day, and he suspected a bad tooth. “Are you done price negotiating now? Let’s go back.” Viggo eyed him strangely but shrugged. “Okay. I’ll have the men load up the dragon.”

Back on the ship, Viggo watched Ryker try to subtly massage his jaw again and rolled his eyes. “What’s wrong with you? You’ve been off all day.” Ryker hesitated, wanting to lie, but Viggo’s gaze held him down. “I’ve had a toothache all day, and it’s only getting worse. I might have to go see Ola about it, but you know I hate those pliers she uses.”

Viggo sighed, regarding his brother with ill-disguised impatience. “Still, it will hurt less for her to pull it then if you let it rot until it falls out. Or I could take it out.”

Ryker’s head whipped up at this last statement. “What?”

“So you don’t have to go to Ola. I can tell it’s one closer to the front, I can just pull it.” Viggo didn’t know why he was offering to do it, but here he was. The Grimborn would never admit it, but he hated seeing Ryker scared, and anything related to dentistry terrified him. 

“Fine. Just… do it fast okay?” There was a tremble in Ryker’s voice, making Viggo smile a little despite himself. “Don’t be such a baby. It’ll take a second, tops. Just don’t tell Ola or I’ll never hear the end of it.”

Viggo guided his brother into a chair and then spent several moments trying to get the right angle before finally climbing onto his brother’s lap. Yes, it was as awkward as it sounds, but it worked. Before Ryker even had time to protest, Viggo had found the bad tooth and ripped it out.

“Oh.” Besides the faint taste of blood, Ryker felt little more than relief. “Um, thanks.” Viggo laughed at the shocked expression on his older brother’s face. “See, not so bad.” 

Viggo pulled him up, still grinning. “Don’t be such a baby next time and come to me when it first starts hurting. Come on now, let’s go get that dragon settled.”


	15. Forced Together (Part 1)

The passages of the cave were dark and damp, lit only by the masses of phosphorescent plants and worms that lived on the stone. Dagur’s torch had burned out hours ago, and the berserker found himself slightly grateful; it made it easier to ignore the blood staining his skin. He was starting to feel sick, but forced himself to continue. There had to be an unguarded entrance somewhere.

It was stupid really, how Dagur had gotten trapped down here. He had come with the other dragon riders a day ago… or was it two? There was no way to tell down here. The riders had been lured to a remote island on rumors that an unidentified species of dragon resided there, and the team had split up to cover more ground. Dagur had taken his triple strike to the north tip of the island, where he found a cave entrance with promising signs of dragon activity. He was ready to remount and find the others- then someone shot him in the leg.

\----------

Viggo stomped through the stone passages, still fuming with rage. The nerve of those men! They really thought they could take down a Grimborn? Well, they had another thing coming. Viggo had visited the island after hearing of an undiscovered dragon species. This in itself was enough reason to investigate, but after his spies had reported that the dragon riders were going for the same reason, it was irresistible. 

The trip had gone well until he had gotten shot at just as he found a cave that could have been possible habitat for the unknown dragons. Viggo’s men had panicked, and in the chaos Viggo found himself separated from everyone else- deep, deep, underground. He had tried to wander back up to the surface, but only succeeded in getting completely lost. Thank Thor that he had been the one carrying most of the survival supplies instead of Ryker. 

Panic was starting to claw at Viggo’s chest- he knew that he’d been in the caves far too long. If what he suspected was true, that the strange men were assassins sent to kill him, then they would soon tire of waiting and enter the caves to finish the job. Ryker’s forces, since they hadn’t found him yet, likely couldn’t get close enough to even try. So, Viggo was on his own in this mess then. 

Viggo continued his march.

\--------------

Dagur groaned, head swimming. He had only stopped for a minute, but it had been enough; the determination that had forced him on for an unknown length of time had finally run out, and he was feeling the true weight of his exhaustion now. The redhead sank to his knees on the floor of the tunnel. The motion strained his injured leg, and the spike of pain, combined with nausea from his dizzy head, was enough to make him vomit.

It hurt. Everything hurt. It was strange; Dagur had been shot before, and it hadn’t felt like this. What his brain was too muddled to realize was that this likely meant infection. He hadn’t taken the arrow out- it had pierced the middle of his shin, possibly hitting the bone, and protruded out the front of his leg a few inches below the knee. This meant that he wasn’t bleeding to death, but having a foreign object (like a wooden arrow) stuck into him for an extended period of time wasn’t the best thing either. It also meant that his leg was quite possibly fractured, but he tried not to think about it. He needed that leg. 

Dagur laughed, wheezing and shaking. All of a sudden, all that he could think of was how mad Mala would be when he came home all beaten up. He could see it so well- she would tease him for being such a baby over a simple arrow wound. Then she would would kiss him, and say that he ought to give her a ride on his dragon to make up for scaring her. Dagur would, and everything would be okay… 

It took far too much effort, but Dagur forced himself to his feet. He had to survive; if not for himself, than for his wife. Besides, if Dagur couldn’t survive a few days with no supplies and a wound, who was he to call himself a berserker?

Dagur didn’t even make it ten more feet before collapsing. The momentum of his fall was too great, and the berserker was unconscious before he even hit the floor.

\---------

Viggo had had enough. He was cold, tired, and sick of stumbling around in the dark. Sure, the glowing lichen and stuff helped, but it was only enough to see about an inch from the tiny light sources. He did actually have some fire supplies and one last torch, but considering how lost he was, the younger Grimborn didn’t want to risk wasting them. He had also found a cave with a tiny bit of sunlight streaming into it, but it didn’t have any exits- still, it might do to spend a night in if he had to. 

Crunch. Crunch. Scraapppeee. Viggo froze. He could clearly hear footsteps up ahead. The viking gripped the pommel of his sword, ready to fight for his life, and waited. Crunch. Crunch… crunch. Wait- the footsteps sounded strange. They weren’t the efficient, confident steps of an armed killer. These footsteps were slow and dragging, as if the person they belonged to was badly hurt. 

Thump. The sound of a heavy body hitting stone soon followed. Was this a trap, or was someone else trapped down here by the assassins? Viggo kept his hand on his sword but crept towards the sound.


	16. Forced Together (Part 2)

Dagur could vaguely sense someone at his side, but in the dark his confused eyes couldn’t make out a thing. “Mala?” 

“Do I look- no, sorry. Don’t try to get up.” One arm slipped under Dagur’s arms, the other under his knees, and with a grunt of effort, the stranger was carrying Dagur. Too out of it to be embarrassed at being carried like a new bride, Dagur blinked up at the unknown man. His vision cleared, and Dagur’s eyes widened when he saw who it was. “No! Get… away!” 

Hatred made a small impact on Dagur’s haziness and he struggled in Viggo’s grasp. “Stop that. I can barely carry you as it is. Believe it or not, I’m actually trying to help here.” Seeing that his efforts were going nowhere, Dagur stopped struggling and glared at Viggo. “Going to… kill me.” Viggo snorted. “If I wanted to do that, I would have stabbed you while you were unconscious in the tunnel. Try to think for once in your life. I’m helping you because I don’t have the power to get out of here on my own.” 

The two eventually came to a cave, and Viggo laid Dagur down against the far wall before finding a large stone to block the entrance. When the Grimborn started a fire Dagur groaned, knowing what was coming next. 

“Do you have to cauterize it? I think it would be fine if I could just stitch it.”

Viggo snorted. “Sure, like you can even sit up right now. Did you not hear me say that you have blood poisoning? You’re lucky I have an herbalist kit, and even then I’d be surprised if that didn’t hit an artery. When I remove the arrow you’ll start to bleed out. So yes I’m cauterizing it.”

Dagur tried to hold still, but it was hard. The process was agonizing, but thankfully over quickly, and Viggo soon had the wound neatly bandaged. “Thanks” Dagur mumbled grudgingly. Viggo chuckled and put his things away, but then he froze. “What-”

“Shhhhh!” Viggo made a listening motion. Then Dagur could hear it; the sure, steady footsteps of assassins. “They shouldn’t be able to see us” Viggo whispered, “But be ready for a fight.”

One of Dagur’s hands found the handle of his axe and he gripped it as well as he could, but Viggo could see that the normally tough viking would be no use if it came down to a battle. He needed rest and more treatment. Viggo readied his sword and waited; he could take down two or three before they shot him, if he got the jump on them. 

The footsteps came closer and closer until they stopped just outside the room. They paused, and Viggo heard two gruff voices;

“Where did they go?”

“I don’t know, can’t see anything with this stupid glowing stuff everywhere.”

“Well, just remember there’s two of them now. The Grimborn was bad enough, but now we’ve got a berserker to worry about. I really didn’t get paid enough for this.”

“Hah, me neither. Still, Krogan will kill us if we don’t get ‘em, so keep your eyes peeled.”

The mercenaries laughed nervously and continued down the tunnel. Once the sounds of their passing faded, Viggo breathed a sigh of relief. He returned to Dagur’s side and felt his forehead, frowning at how hot the redhead’s skin had become. There was limited water available, but it was cold enough to help, so Viggo shredded the bottom of his shirt into strips, soaked them, and covered Dagur’s face with them.

Why was he even doing this? Viggo could likely get out on his own, even if all of the entrances had at least ten heavily armed guards and unknown numbers of hidden snipers waiting for him. No, he wasn’t that dumb; he did need Dagur’s help for this. 

The cooling seemed to be helping, and Dagur soon stirred back to full wakefulness, rubbing his eyes and groaning softly. “This is not shaping up to be a good day. Days?” Viggo gave him time to recover while he made a small meal of preserved meat and dried fruit from his packs.

“So you only have enough supplies for another day or so it looks like. We’ll have to have a plan soon, tonight would likely be best.” Viggo blinked. “You actually want to help me? I thought I would have to bribe you.” Dagur shrugged. “It’s not like I have much choice. You are a horrible person, but Krogan’s worse.”

Viggo rolled his eyes but didn’t reply. “Fine. As far as i can tell from the light coming in, we have a couple hours left before nightfall, and another hour or so before total darkness. Get some rest.”


	17. Forced Together (Part 3)

Dagur woke when Viggo shook his shoulder, and after a few tries, managed to stand. “Alright, let’s bust out of here. Crazy how much you can hate something after being trapped in it.” 

Viggo shrugged. “You look like you’re gonna pass out, but okay. If all else fails I can use you as a shield.” Dagur snorted but joined Viggo, the two pulling back the rock hiding them and heading out into the tunnels.

It didn’t take long to reach an exit now that Dagur’s head was clear. His leg ached, but it could take his weight, so Dagur considered himself lucky. “Okay, I count ten foot soldiers and fifteen archers.” Viggo nodded. “Yeah, there’s those and then there’s hidden snipers. I tried to run out of here within an hour of getting trapped; it didn’t go very well.” 

Dagur grinned, a little too happy to hear Viggo admit to a failure. “You still have that herbalist kit, yeah? I have an idea.” 

Half an hour later, Viggo and Dagur had a small pile of bombs, made from glaze balm and metal wires, usually used as splinting materials. Despite his best attempt, Viggo was impressed; he hadn’t known how to do this. 

The pair sneaked back up to the surface. Dagur hefted a bomb, grinning madly, and whispered, “Ready? You take the left, I’ll go right. Then just try to dash past the snipers if you can.” Viggo nodded curtly, once, and charged.

Screams filled the air as unsuspecting soldiers were blown skyward, a brilliant flash of light blinding the ones not caught in the blasts. Dagur was almost through the line, losing sight of Viggo among the smoke, and when he turned his head, someone tackled him to the ground. The assassin grinned, ready to plunge a knife into Dagur’s throat-

Only to be thrown to the side by Viggo, who took the knife and swiftly killed the assassin. “Don’t just stand there, run!” Viggo paused to yank Viggo to his feet and the two ran again, sprinting until the sounds of outraged soldiers were far behind them. 

“Oh wow! That was awesome!” Viggo laughed, flopping on his back into the grass. Viggo was smiling too, exhilarated by the risky battle. “You’re surprisingly handy in a fight.” The two sat in the grass, panting and grinning, before Dagur sat back, thoughtful. “So what now? I need to find my friends, but I’m not sure they would like to see you.” 

Viggo snorted. “Obviously. I’m going to circle around and find my brother and our forces, then get as far away from this stupid island as possible.” 

The two shook hands and went their separate ways, each strangely pleased after fighting alongside an enemy. It would be strange to be on opposing sides next time they met…


	18. Blindness (Part 1)

Ryker would never forget the sound of Viggo’s scream. He turned just in time to see his brother howling in pain, scratching at his face. Something had been thrown in his eyes by a soldier, who turned and ran from the sinking ship. As water rushed into the room, Ryker only had time to grab his brother’s arm before they were enveloped in darkness.

Viggo could feel wood beneath him. The rocking of waves. Someone sat beside him, their breathing loud in Viggo’s ears. He opened his eyes, but the world was dark around him; it must be night then, how much time had passed? “Viggo! You’re finally awake.” So Ryker was with him then.

“Yes. Where are we?” Ryker paused at this question. “I managed to find a lifeboat when our ship sank. Can’t you tell?” Viggo frowned. “Uh, no? Besides, we got attacked in the morning and it’s night now. How long was I out?” Ryker paused again. “What can you see? Please, just answer.” 

Viggo growled and replied, “Nothing. Darkness. I can’t even see myself. Why?” His brother sighed quietly. “I wasn’t sure while you were unconscious. Before the ship was sank, someone threw something in your face. It’s not night, you’ve been blinded.”

Viggo’s blood ran cold at this. “No. That can’t… I can’t- I’ll heal. It won’t be permanent.” Ryker placed a hand on his shoulder. “Hopefully it won’t be. I think there’s an island on the horizon, so I’m going to try to paddle towards it okay?”

The younger grimborn sat up in the tiny boat, arms wrapped around his knees. If there was one thing that Viggo hated, more than anything, it was the sensation of helplessness. And now? He had no way to escape from that feeling.

The boat hit the sandy shore of the island with a thunk and Viggo gasped, gripping the side of the boat with one hand shakily. “Sorry, I forgot to warn you. Grab my hand.” Viggo felt his brother’s hand in his and cautiously stood up, Ryker guiding him out of the boat and up the beach.

“There’s a tree here, just sit down- yeah, right there. Just stay put for a second okay? I’m going to drag up the boat and try to get a bit of shelter together, who knows how long we’ll be here.” Viggo nodded. “Can I help at all? I could… uhh…” Ryker shook his head, forgetting Viggo couldn’t see it. “No, just rest a bit. We’ll figure this out, promise


	19. Cave In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wrote this on request/suggestion, hope you like it! XD

Viggo groaned, shaking mud off his boots for the hundredth time that day. “How did I get stuck in a stupid cave with you again? I am so sick of caves. Dark, dirty, and you can easily get trapped in them.” 

Ryker grinned at his brother’s complaining. “Sounds like someone’s a little claustrophobic, eh?” Viggo shot him a death glare. “No, I just don’t like being underground just so you can gawk at some rock formations or whatever. Just hurry so we can leave.” 

Ryker ignored his brother’s further mutterings in favor of studying a large, sharp piece of rock jutting from the ceiling. Tiny worm-like dragons crawled through a maze of holes running through the stone, and the larger Grimborn smiled at their squeaks and occasional little bursts of flame. He might be a dragon hunter, but it didn’t mean he couldn’t appreciate their wonder sometimes. 

Suddenly, the dragons released squeaks of alarm and vanished. With an uneasy feeling in his chest, Ryker turned back to Viggo, just as the earth fell away beneath them both.

Ryker woke sometime later, hearing groans and cries from somewhere in the darkness around him. It sounded like a wounded animal, and at first all Ryker could think of were the tiny dragons from before. But no, it was too loud to come from something so small. Wait- where was Viggo?

“Brother!” Ryker screamed, struggling to his feet. He stumbled forward not three steps before hitting something soft, which cried out in response. “Ahhg! I’m down here!” Ryker almost wept with relief, falling to his knees beside Viggo, who made no attempt to move. “Can you stand?” Ryker placed his hand on his brother and it came away wet, sending a chill down his spine. 

“Uhh… no. I don’t think that would be wise.” Viggo gave a shaky laugh, but it stopped when Ryker’s shaking hands finally reignited one of their torches, revealing both brothers in harsh relief. 

A long spike of rock had impaled Viggo. It went straight through his abdomen and into the dirt underneath him, staining the hard earth. Ryker felt his breath coming faster and faster as he looked at the horrible wound. There was no way Viggo would survive this… 

The darkening of Ryker’s eyes was clear to Viggo, and he raised a bloody hand shakily, placing it on his brother’s arm. “It’s the end for me I think, dear brother. Funny, I always thought I would die under a dragon’s flame, or at the hands of some great warrior.” He coughed and released a spray of blood. “Leave me here.”

Ryker shook his head before Viggo had even finished, knowing what he was going to say. “Absolutely not.” He choked down a sob, “I’m your big brother, I’m supposed to protect you.” Viggo rolled his eyes, somehow smiling still through his agony. “Like I ever needed you too. The rest of the cave could fall at any moment, get out of here.”

His smile faded as Ryker wrapped his hands around the rocky spear. “I’m going to break this off around your body and leave the rest in to stop up as much bleeding as I can. Then I’m going to get you out of here, we are finding our ships, and Ola is going to give you so much painkiller that you’ll feel as good as new.” 

The rock was successfully broken off, and somehow Viggo stayed conscious through the process, although Ryker tactfully didn’t mention the tears that his little brother kept furiously wiping away.

Viggo shuddered and passed out as soon as Ryker picked him up. The bigger man clutched the smaller one protectively, carrying him bridal style up through the piles of rubble. Thankfully the tunnels were mostly clear, and Ryker soon reached the surface.

One of Viggo’s hands curled against his chest, the other flopping limply. There was so much blood; it stained Ryker’s shirt, his pants, his boots, his hands, everything. And his little brother had gotten so cold… 

No. There was no way he was giving up, not when Viggo’s chest still rose and fell, when his cheeks were still flushed with life. “We made it out of the caves. See how beautiful it is?” Viggo’s eyes opened a fraction and he stared up at the blue sky. “It’s a nice place to die. Much better than that horrible cave.” Ryker growled and started walking faster. “You are not dying, not today. I won’t let you.”

It was a childish thing to say, and Viggo grinned, wheezing too much to really laugh. “I’m not sure that you have much choice.” His smile drooped. “I… I’m sorry. But you need to listen- whatever happens, you can not blame yourself. This isn’t your fault.” Ryker could see the ship in the harbor, and he quickened his step even more, despite the ever-growing pool of blood on Viggo’s stomach. “Stop talking like that, we’re almost to the ship. We’re so close.”

Viggo grasped Ryker’s shoulder, trembling with the effort of such a small motion. “Promise me. Just promise me. Ryker, please!” This shocked the older grimborn, and he quickly nodded, even as his tears of guilt fell onto Viggo. “I promise. I’d promise you anything. Anything at all.” 

This seemed to satisfy Viggo, and he relaxed in Ryker’s arms, growing frighteningly still. The sound of his labored breath vanished. “Viggo? Brother? Answer me!” Ryker screamed and shook his brother’s limp form, but there was nothing. He gripped the smaller man even tighter and ran towards the ship.

A little boy and his brother played, sparring with their little wooden swords and grinning with the pure joy of childhood. The younger climbed a tree, intending to turn around on one of the branches and jump back down like a pirate scaling the rigging. But the ground suddenly seemed so far away, and fear crashed through his happiness. The edges of his world seemed to darken, but then his older brother reached the tree and held up his arms.

“Come back to me! It’s okay, I’ve got you! Come back to me Viggo!” The little boy hesitated, but then he saw the reassuring smile on the other’s face. So he leaped. 

Had he died? If so, then this was not what he had imagined Valalla to be like. And his middle pulsed with pain; looking down revealed the source to be his dressed wound. So, he had survived. Ryker sat asleep in a chair beside him, looking terrible. He was covered in dried blood and dust, and had dark circles under his eyes. Viggo poked him and he jerked awake.

“Sorry Ola, I know you said to go rest- Viggo!”He gingerly leaned over to hug his brother, shaking with happiness. “You’ve been unconscious for two weeks.” tears shone in his eyes, but Ryker couldn’t stop smiling. “Ola was almost certain you would die, since there was so much risk of infection and you had lost so much blood. I’m so happy that you’re alright.” 

Viggo tried to sit up but flopped back down with a groan. “I feel so weak.” Ryker laughed softly and propped his brother up with pillows. “That’s what happens when you don’t move for two weeks. When you’re a bit stronger I’ll set you up on deck so you don’t have to stare at the walls all day.” 

“Thank you.”

“It’s not a big deal.”

“No, for everything. For saving my life. I thought I was done for, and you never gave up. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“That’s what brothers do. Get some rest.” Ryker stayed at his brother’s side until he fell asleep.


	20. Blindness (Part 2)

“I found part of our medical kit, and maybe this stuff will help. It’s supposed to be for burns but…” Ryker’s large fingers pressed against Viggo’s eyelids, smearing some sort of thick substance on them before wrapping a strip of cloth over them. “At least they’re shielded a bit now. I explored the island while you were asleep, and it’s actually pretty big. There’s fresh water sources and lots of food sources, we should be okay if we need to stay here awhile.” 

Viggo nodded, sliding his right hand along the sand until he found his water skin. “I can fill that up for you-”

“No, I can do it myself, just take me to the freshwater. I am not going to be useless on this stupid island.” Viggo stood and found Ryker’s arm, stumbling a bit over loose stone and roots. “I could carry you.” Viggo only growled in response and kept walking. “I can hear running water, are we close?” Ryker told him they were, then guided him into a crouch. “It’s right in front of you now, stick your hands forward and you’ll feel it. I’m going to try to find some small game and fruit to eat, just stay here.”

Viggo sat by the side of the river, humming softly to himself and dipping his feet into the cool water. His water skin was full, and with nothing else to do, the Grimborn soon grew bored. Then a twig snapped behind him. “Ryker? Back already?”

Something warm and scaly pressed against his outstretched hand and Viggo jumped backward. A purr met his ears, and Viggo hesitated briefly before the warm hide met his hand again. “Uhh… You’re definitely not Ryker. But what are you? Some sort of dragon?” The creature nudged Viggo’s chest, making him stumble a little in the creek. “Hey, careful! I can’t see what you’re doing.”

As if the dragon understood, it’s mouth gently closed around his hand and pulled him out of the water. It purred gently and licked his face, wrapping large leathery wings around him as if he was a lost child.

Ryker walked back into the clearing and froze when he heard his brother laugh. “Viggo? What’s going on?” Walking a little further in allowed Ryker to see the huge skrill towering over his little brother, and… licking him? “Hello brother! I met a nice dragon! I think it’s a dragon? Well it seems to like me, so maybe we can ride it out of here.” 

Suddenly, Ryker recognized the dragon’s odd behavior and started to laugh. “Yeah, it thinks you’re its baby!” He doubled over, wheezing with laughter at the embarrassed look on his brother’s face. 

“Yeah yeah whatever. Let’s grab supplies and get out of here.”

As the brothers flew away from the island, Viggo could have sworn he could see a little light through the bandages over his eyes. “Ryker? Can you undo my blindfold?” Ryker obeyed, and Viggo opened his eyes. He gasped.

“Can you see?” Viggo nodded, grinning. “Kind of! But it’s better than before. I bet Ola can help now that it’s come back a bit.” Before he could stop himself, Ryker gave his brother a quick hug. “I’m glad. Now, let’s get you home.”


	21. Laughing Gas

*I modified this from a request for ticklish Viggo XD might still do ticklish, or move on to a more angsty thing or whatever. Enjoy!*

Viggo hung in chains beside his brother, both men having sour looks on their faces. 

“This is your fault.”

“Oh, says the one who who insisted on entering the dragon rider’s secret hideout.” Viggo shot back sarcastically. “Ah, but who knew it would be so heavily guarded!” 

A hissing sound filled the room and both brothers froze, the conversation immediately dying. “What is that?” Ryker shrugged. “How would I know? It’ll either kill us or it won’t.”

Viggo would have scoffed, but his head was starting to feel… fuzzy. He started to laugh, then found he couldn’t stop. 

“Hahaha…”

“What? Why are you- hahahaha!” 

Ryker found himself giggling helplessly, swinging against his shackles. The pain in his wrists just set off another round of laughter. Viggo gasped at his side, tears of laughter running down his face. “What is this? I can’t- ha- stop…” 

Viggo tried to straighten his face, but he made the mistake of looking at Ryker, who was still trying to get his breathing under control and whose face was twisted hilariously. 

“Oh Thor. This is worse than pain, I can’t breath.” Viggo continued to laugh.

\-----

Viggo grinned on the other side of the door, and Hiccup raised an eyebrow. “Amusing, sure, but I don’t see how it gets us what we need to know. Shut it off before you kill them okay?” Viggo nodded and shrugged, closing off the machine that had been releasing the gas into the room.

“I’ll have to thank Yohan for whatever this is. I honestly had thought it wouldn’t do a thing, but I like it. I’ll figure out how to use it.” 

The grimborn brothers still wheezed on the other side of the door, and Dagur left them alone. For now….


	22. Paralysis (Part 1)

“I can’t move my legs.”

“What?”

“I. Can’t. Move. My. Legs.” 

“... Why?”

“I don’t know. I fell off the cliff and… hit a rock? Or maybe a tree. I hit my back pretty hard though, and I can’t stand up.”

Viggo and Ryker, a few days before, had entered a thickly forested island in search of a new plant that would be sold as a polish for dragon products. They had been climbing a tall hill to get a better view of the terrain when its jagged cliffside fell away beneath them, sending the brothers plummeting into the trees far below. 

Ryker was thankful to be uninjured, but it appeared that Viggo hadn’t been so lucky. 

The elder grimborn lifted his brother’s shirt and sucked in a breath at the nasty sight; Viggo’s skin was scraped and bleeding on top of rapidly darkening bruises. They mottled the entirety of his lower back, concentrated along his spine and hips. “Well you definitely hit something. I’ll have to carry you.”

Viggo grunted in annoyance, but didn’t protest until Ryker started to lift him. “Ahh!” Ryker quickly set him back down, alarmed. “Are you alright?” 

“Yes, it just jarred my back more than I expected. Ignore any noises I make and try again.” 

The pain was horrible, but Viggo bit his hand to muffle the noises as Ryker carried him back to their ship on the coast of the island. 

Ola was picking herbs on the hillside, humming and minding her own business, when she saw the brothers round the corner. The healer gasped and dropped her basket, rushing towards them and demanding to know what had happened. As Ryker explained, Ola’s eyes grew wider and wider. 

“Set him down right now!” She yelped. “You should never move someone with a back injury!” She gently turned Viggo onto his stomach once Ryker set him down, then pulled up his shirt and started feeling his back. 

Then she looked straight at Ryker and stated, with her mouth drawn tight with worry, “Who knows what further damage has already been done.”


	23. Paralysis (Part 2)

“Don’t apologize again, I’m sure that your brother is tired of hearing it. Yeah he’s asleep right now, but so am I. You were only trying to help.”

Ola’s hands disappeared back into the tub of water, and Ryker cringed slightly at the sight of the piles of bloody surgical tools. The healer hadn’t used them on Viggo, but it still wasn’t a happy view. “Viggo slipped a disk in his back, and you carrying him just shoved it out of place a bit more, pressing on the nerves. I got in back in place, and if he stays in bed like I told him too then it should heal fine.”

Ryker nodded at Ola’s back, still feeling guilty. “If I had permanently paralyzed him, he would never forgive me.” Ola shrugged. “But you didn’t.”

“But I-”

“Only did what you felt you could to save him.”

Ryker stood tongue tied, at a loss as to how to explain his weighty sense of lingering guilt. She looked up from the cleaning with a no-nonsense expression. “If I let myself feel guilty over every person who has died under my care, then I wouldn’t be here right now. You need to move on. Honestly, I don’t even think Viggo is mad- even if he’d never admit it, he understands that you did your best.

“And really, you could have done much worse. You could have tried dragging him, or dropped him. You could have left him behind to go for help, only to have him get eaten by a dragon, or get caught in another landslide. You could have gotten hurt as well and have been useless, leaving you both stuck out there.”

Ashamed, Ryker looked away, knowing that Ola was right. She was always right, about anything that he ever needed advice for. Her frank attitude was a reassuring presence, one that soothed away Ryker’s worries every time. 

“My point is, Viggo’s been awake for a little while and he’s already bored out of his mind. He’s going to be in bed for at least a few weeks, and I don’t want him being stubborn and getting up before I decide that he’s good and ready. Go sit with him.”

Ryker nodded but paused in the doorway. “I want to thank you.” Ola shrugged. “Healing is what I’m here for.” 

“Not just for that. For your advice too.” Ola blushed, trying to hide it behind her long curls. 

“I just wanted to ask- could you teach me a little medicine? Not much, but just enough so that I don’t mess up again when something like this happens.” 

Ola turned to Ryker and nodded. “Of course! Now go to your brother.”

Ryker left and Ola turned away, smiling to herself, cheeks still pink with happiness.


	24. Oh Happy Day

Viggo eyed his brother’s back as Ryker bustled around their quarters, stuffing food and supplies into a basket. His brother had been spacey and overly exuberant about everything since Viggo had mentioned that he would be stopping the fleet close to come popular vacation beach islands so that the crews could get a break after a hard few weeks of travel. 

To Viggo’s surprise, Ryker had gone straight to Ola and asked her to take a rest from her ship duties and come to the beach with everyone else. What was even more surprising was that she agreed, and Viggo watched her and Ryker make googly eyes at each other for days afterwards. 

Ryker met Ola at the side of the ship, and he helped her out of the smaller rowboat that they took to reach the shore. Viggo almost gagged when their hands stayed linked as they walked up the beach. 

It wasn’t that he didn’t want Ryker to be happy, it was just weird. And Ola was nice, and pretty, and caring. It was just an odd sight after spending so long in battle after battle with no rest in between, only seeing Ola whenever he was half dead, and almost never seeing Ryker with even a smile on his face.

Now, hearing him laugh? Yes it was weird, but it was also felt… good? There was also a tiny sting of loneliness under it all, but Viggo pushed that away, determined to enjoy a good moment without ruining it. 

Yeah, it did feel good overall. Viggo even laughed a little at the sight of Ola pushing Ryker into the waves, and him pulling her in a second later, shouting and splashing and having more fun than anyone on Viggo’s ship had had in a long time. 

“Viggo! Get over here and help me up!” Ryker’s cheeks were flushed, and Ola, standing behind him in the waves, couldn’t stop giggling as she watched the brothers.

Viggo raised an eyebrow and stopped two feet away, not liking the mischievous glint in Ryker’s eye. “Don’t even try.” Ryker shrugged with a grin, still bobbing in the waves with his hand outstretched. “Come on, just help me up. Please?” Ignoring his sense of danger, Viggo sighed and grabbed his brother’s hand.

Before he could react, Ryker flipped Viggo over his head and into the water. Viggo came up spluttering, finding his footing on the sandy bottom. “Oh Thor, you should have seen your face! It was so-

Viggo was on top of Ryker in an instant, dunking him into the water. The brothers came up laughing and choking, then went for it again. 

Ola watched a safe distance away, only half concerned that they would drown each other. 

Ola was a skilled healer who could live anywhere, so anything she wanted, and yet she stayed with two of the most dangerous men in the whole archipelago. Why?

She watched them disappear into the waves and come back up once again, and she knew the answer. It was that she knew them closer than anyone, and to her, no matter what happened, they would always be her silly, clutsy, wonderful boys.


	25. Hypnotism

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you Yeet for the idea!!

Viggo struggled, growling at his captor through his gagged mouth, but it was no use. The figure in front of him smiled, the top half of his face hidden by a mask. How had he even gotten into Viggo’s private quarters in the first place? 

The grimborn had gone to bed late last night, exhausted after a long day of looking over maps and figuring out some new winter routes to use. He had walked through his door, yawning, and ran straight into a tall, muscular man, a hand wrapping around his mouth and nose, pressing chloroform into his airways. 

Viggo woke up tied to a chair, with the masked figure still in his rooms. It must be early morning by now, and there was some hope that his absence would be noticed. But no, none of his crew would dare enter without permission. The figure reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, round object on a chain. 

“Focus on me. That’s it. Just focus on me…”

The voice became farther and farther away from Viggo’s mind with each incantation, and eventually the dragon hunter’s body relaxed, his eyes blanking. 

“Good. Now, here’s what I want you to do…

Ryker saw Viggo standing on deck, staring out at the water with a blank expression. “Not a morning person today, hmm?” Viggo didn’t respond, and Ryker’s brow furrowed. “Are you alright?” Viggo’s eyes shifted to focus on Ryker, but something was… wrong. There was no soul to them. “Hey, what’s-

One of Viggo’s hands suddenly swung out. The knife in his grip sunk into Ryker’s leg and he gave a shout of surprise. “What? Viggo?” The younger Grimborn swung his other hand out, revealing another knife, and Ryker grabbed his wrist, eyes wide with alarm.

“Brother stop! What are you doing?” Even as Ryker’s fingers dug into his skin, Viggo kept trying to attack. Despite his dulled eyes and shuffling movements, there was a large amount of strength behind Viggo’s attacks, and Ryker felt himself being slowly overpowered.

“Duck!” The command came from behind Ryker, and he obeyed without question. A split second later he was glad for his gut reaction- a spade flashed into view and struck his brother on the head, sending him crashing to the floor, unconscious. 

Ola stood in the ship’s walkway, backed by several scared-looking crewmen. She was panting and gripping the spade, looking slightly alarmed with herself. “What just happened?” Ryker asked.

Ola was already getting crewmembers to lift Viggo and take him to the infirmary, pressing a rag against his bleeding forehead. “I hit your brother with a spade.” 

“Well, yeah-

Ola held a finger to her lips. “And that’s what happened. Let me explain in the infirmary.” lowering her voice to a whisper, Ola added, “We need to be far away from his room.” 

Once in the infirmary, Ola sent the guards away. “Your brother was hypnotized.” Ryker raised an eyebrow, but Ola stopped him from objecting. “Think about it. It explains his strange actions. We were only feet from his room- the one place where Viggo is alone for any significant length of time, and out of the way enough that a brief scuffle could go unnoticed.”

“I already sent guards in after the intruder, so don’t you run off on me.” 

Ryker nodded slowly, still eyeing Viggo’s unconscious form. “And the only way you could snap him out of it was by hitting him?” Ola sighed. “I’m sorry for that, but yes. He stabbed you! I didn’t have time to figure out how to ease him out of it naturally. I guarantee he’ll have no more than a headache when he wakes up. You, however, could use some stitches.”

Ola stitched the wound quickly and neatly, sneaking in a kiss on the tip of his nose. “I am sorry, but I’m glad you’re not dead.” Ryker gave her a small smile. “You had your reasons, stop apologizing. And honestly, Viggo kinda deserves to be hit sometimes.” 

This earned a brief snort from Ola, just as a crash sounded overhead, followed by, “We got the spy!”

“Viggo’s going to be even more surly than usual when he wakes up, so at least we’ll have some good news.”

Ryker stood with a dangerous glint in his eye, and smiled strangely. “Oh yes, he’ll have good news all right.”

He paused at the door long enough to show her a blade in his hand. “I’m going to find out who was foolish enough to think that they could take down a Grimborn.”


	26. Camping

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks Ga1903 for the idea!
> 
> sorry this took so long, I was out of town! :D

“Camping? Really?”

“Yes. I thought that you could use a break after the whole hypnotism ordeal.”

“Tch. You just want to take a vacation.” 

“Well, that’s part of it. But seriously, Ola says you need a break. Come on, it’ll just be us.” 

It had been three weeks since Viggo had been hypnotized on his own ship. Ryker’s leg was completely healed, and Viggo had no more lasting physical impact than a tiny scar from Ola’s shovel attack. 

The lasting impact of the event had been more mental for Viggo. The intruder had never admitted who sent him, and Viggo had spent hours upon hours looking over plans of his ship, searching for ways that the man could have gotten to him. Ryker had found him asleep at his desk multiple times, and had carried him to bed with a frown of concern every time. 

It wasn’t healthy. Viggo had gotten jumpy and twitchy, and he had lost weight. Ryker hoped that this trip would help take his mind off of things for awhile. 

The viking brothers set off and soon reached the camping spot, a secluded island with a small lake and a river running through it. Viggo could almost laugh at the idyllic scene- but he paused as they got closer. 

“This is where we went camping as kids…”

Ryker grinned at the look on Viggo’s face and nodded. “Yes. Remember hunting for frogs in the marsh banks and trying to fish in dad’s little rowboat?” Viggo nodded, lifting a tent bag from the floor of his larger ship so that he and his brother could get into their longboat to actually reach the island. 

Ryker stepped down first, then held a hand back up towards Viggo. “I told you it would be fun! Now get down here!” 

There was only the briefest moment of hesitation before Viggo grabbed his brother’s hand, and the two Grimborns started towards the island together.


	27. Freezing

“Who’s idea was this again?”

“Yours.”

“... shut up.”

A slight smile curled up the corners of Ryker’s mouth as he watched his brother stomp through the snow. Viggo’s short, stocky build, paired with his irritated expression and multiple layers of winter clothing, made him look almost like a disgruntled bulldog. 

“W-we just n-need the ice ferns. Then we c-c-can go home.” Ryker nodded in agreement, but his slight smile faded. Viggo had been shivering for hours despite his layers, and his lips were blue. “Are you doing alright? I know you hate the cold, and we’ve been going for hours.”

Viggo glared at him and started stomping slightly faster through the snow. “I’m not a baby, the cold won’t kill me.” Ryker opened his mouth to argue, then closed it again and followed after his brother. 

It was just starting to get dark when the brothers finally had enough of the ice ferns and turned back for their ships. The snow, which had been falling steadily for the last few hours, was now starting to fall in earnest, and it was getting hard to walk to. 

Ryker frowned at his compass in his gloved hands and paused mid step; they should be closer to the ship than this, right? Had they traveled farther than he had thought? Or had they been walking in circles ever since the snowfall had gotten stronger? 

“Viggo? Don’t be mad, but I think we need to stop and check the course readings, I’ve been going the wrong- Viggo?”

The younger Grimborn was standing completely still in the snow, staring straight ahead with glassy eyes. Ryker struggled back to him, and it wasn’t until he shook his brother’s shoulder that the younger Grimborn that noticed him and jumped. 

“Don’t sneak up on me like that! It’s too c-cold for your stupid games. Tell me we’re almost b-back t-to the sh-sh-ship.” 

Ryker frowned. “Well, I think we might have to find a cave or something actually. There should be some up ahead, since we’re just retracing our earlier steps. I’m sorry, I had messed up the calculations a little bit.” 

Viggo stared at him for a second with his brow furrowed. “You… okay.” He rubbed his eyes like a child and when Ryker started to walk on and he didn’t follow, the elder Grimborn took his hand, leading him on until, to his relief, he found the cave systems.

It was still snow, but it was a deep hole that the brothers could huddle together in until the storm passed. Ryker pulled Viggo in and frowned at his blank expression. If he remembered Ola’s lessons at all, his brother could be nearing frostbite and hypothermia.

Ryker pulled off his brother’s glove to check his blood flow and gasped.

The tips of Viggo’s fingers were already turning black.


	28. Freezing (part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry it's short and sappy, I just felt bad for taking so long. Anyways, enjoy!!

“Viggo. Hey- you’ve got to stay awake. If you go to sleep here, you’re never going to wake up again.” 

Viggo glared at Ryker blearily and mumbled, “It’s cold and I’m tired. I can’t keep this up much longer.” The elder grimborn nodded and continued to drag his brother through the snow, determined to reach the ship at any cost.

When Ryker had seen Viggo’s fingers, he had known they had to move fast. If frostbite was allowed to set in, then Viggo could lose the affected appendages. So even if the cave had been more sheltered, it wasn’t warm enough. The brothers had to make it to the ship- or they could both die.

Ryker’s compass was virtually useless in the snow, but he was sure they were close. They had to be to the coastline at least, and if they made it there they could follow it to the ship. “Come on Viggo. We’re almost there, you just have to go a little bit longer. Just a bit longer…”

Knees weak and eyes tired, Ryker tried to focus on moving forward. There was a blurry shape in the distance, but his vision was fading fast…   
\-----

“Welcome back, you lovable idiot.” Ola was there beside Ryker’s bed when he woke up. He turned to look for Viggo and she guided his face back to look at her, smiling gently. 

“He’s resting, you can see him later.You were really close to getting back- thankfully I had gone out to look for you. I managed to heat him up slowly, and there won’t be permanent damage. If you hadn’t tried so hard to get back, you would both be dead right now.” 

Ola leaned over and kissed his face. “Thank you for getting back safely. Get some rest.” Ryker closed his eyes, letting Ola’s familiar scent carry him away.


	29. The Scourge of Odin (part 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the amazing idea, Littlefury13 :D more to come. 
> 
> Love all you readers, and more to come. XD  
> As always I don't own anything in this, just my ideas.

*I amped up the illness a bit to make it more fun for myself lol XD have fun!*

At first, looking at the ship, nothing appeared to be wrong. Then the wind shifted, and the stench of death and sickness hit Viggo like a wall. At his side, Ryker turned away, and the crewmembers started gagging. 

Viggo fought down his own urge to vomit and stepped onto the ship. He had gotten word of one of his crew ships floating as if abandoned just two days ago, and had flown out hoping to simply punish the men for dereliction of duty. Now, it seemed he would be planning their funerals.

The horrible smell increased exponentially as Viggo jumped the small gap between his ship and the other. He pulled open the door leading down to the quarters and recoiled, smacking into Ryker just behind him. “What, did you- oh.”

A dead, bloated corpse lay on the steps leading into the belly of the ship, face twisted and disclosed so badly that it barely seemed human. Viggo stepped over it and continued down into the ships, checking each corpse for signs of life. The very last seaman, slumped over in a doorway, was still breathing when Viggo knelt beside him. 

“What happened here?” Viggo grabbed the man’s shirt and pulled his up into a sitting position. The man coughed, blood spraying from his mouth all over Viggo’s face. “Sick… Odin…” The man took a final rattling breath and died. Viggo wiped the blood from his face and stood, frowning to himself. “Ryker? Have the bodies wrapped and given a proper sea burial. I will take the primary ship and head back immediately- I need to figure out what this is before it spreads.” 

As Ryker watched his brother sail away, he couldn’t see the slight tremor in his hands. All Ryker could do was watch as the bodies were lowered into the cold gray waves, and push away his growing feelings of foreboding.


	30. The Scourge of Odin (part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again Littlefury13 :D I'll probably have one more piece again for this idea and then move on to other request on this same fic XD 
> 
> As always, thanks for reading!

Ryker reached the ship to find Ola waiting for him, her normal welcoming smile nowhere to be seen. Immediately his heart sank; what had happened while he was gone? Ola grabbed him and began to half-drag him across the deck, and, once inside, whirled around to face him. 

“Viggo’s in quarantine. What those men died from is contagious- it’s called the Scourge of Odin.”

The realization that he recognized the illness was accompanied with an overwhelming wave of horror. Ryker slid to the floor with his hands over his face, only supported by the wall at his face and Ola’s fruitlessly comforting hands. “Come. We can talk privately in the infirmary.”

Once the pair were alone, Ola explained how dire the situation is; how they needed a Buffalord, how unlikely it was to find one, and how little time Viggo had left.

“I want to see him.”

Ola shook her head. “Absolutely not.”

Hands shaking, Ryker gave her a look of desperation. “You said that he has a month at most, but probably less than that. I can’t let him die alone.”

Ola hesitated, about to refuse again, and Ryker yelled, “He’s my little brother! I can’t lose him!”

“And I can’t lose you both!” 

Tears were running down Ola’s face, and her breath was ragged from her outburst. “If you get close to him right now,” she continued, in a much softer tone, “You will both die. You may think I’m strong, but I can't. Do. This. Alone. We need a plan to try and save Viggo. And… if that fails… we will need to support each other more than ever before.”

Ryker and Ola held each other for a long moment, trying to get their thoughts together. Finally, Ryker drew away, taking deep breaths to calm himself. “You said that Buffalord drool could cure him?”

Ola nodded. “Yes. But Viggo is already too sick to be moved, and the drool will disapparate before you can get it back to him. We just don’t have time-”

Then she froze, a look of dawning realization on her face. “If I can somehow completely seal a bottle- it just might hold out- let me try something.” She was already lost in concentration and dashed off through her shelves of medical items, muttering to herself. 

Eventually Ola returned, carrying a long tube and a blob of thick brown wax. “Before you get too excited, I have to warn you that I have no idea if this will work for sure. I don’t want to give you false hope. But- if you can get the drool into this tube, mix it with the herbs, and seal it before it starts to corrode, then we have a fighting chance.”

Ryker moved to take the tube and wax, but Ola moved to stop him. “I know that you probably want to try this right away, right? I just have to warn you that it’s a really long trip, even if you fly.”

What Ola was trying to gently suggest was that Ryker might make it back with the cure, only to watch Viggo die in front of him. 

Or he might come back to a funeral, without the chance to say goodbye. 

It was a risk he would have to take.


	31. Scourge of Odin (part 3)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sappy and sweet, just how I like it. XD thanks for reading, and for being so patient with my inconsistency :3 loves!

Ryker watched the buffalord amble down the hill of the island, cursing it all the way. The stupid thing kept sending out huge flames whenever it saw him, and Ryker was too worried about breaking the special vial Ola had given him to try harder. 

Watching Hiccup’s group of riders capture the creature and collect its drool had been frustrating to say the least. If Ryker hadn’t been trying to rush so much and had been able to take any soldiers with him, maybe he could have surrounded them to negotiate some sort of deal. But as it was, he was all alone, and powerless to use them. Unless… 

Back at the ship, Ola studied Viggo’s sleeping face with a frown of worry. She was covered head to toe with thick hide, a veil covering her face so that she could breath, but still be protected. After listening to Viggo cough and wheeze for countless hours she had given him a light sleeping draught, scared that anything stronger would be too much for the ill viking. Ola wished that she had the same level of protective gear for Ryker so that he could have seen his brother, but it came from a rare dragon species and it had taken forever for her to find enough for her own suit. Viggo had been asking for his brother all day, too out of his mind with fever to know that Ryker wasn’t there. 

Speaking of Ryker, he should have been back by now. Yet the skies and seas around her remained empty, and Viggo grew weaker by the day. Something must have gone wrong… Ola shook her head and finished her daily task of caring for Viggo- making sure he had water, was clean, and comfortable as possible. Then she stepped out of the room into the tiny adjoining hallway and carefully stripped off the protective clothing; thankfully Viggo hadn’t coughed on her today, but she still needed to clean it thoroughly and hang it up. She did just that, then entered the main area of the ship, the slight hesitation of fear never leaving her step. 

***********

“Let me get this straight- Viggo is dying, and that’s a bad thing?”

Hiccup could see the desperation in Ryker’s eyes, and even as irritated as he was, he couldn’t help but feel a stab of pity for the man. Ryker looked exhausted, and Hiccup knew that he had to be on his last legs if he was coming to him of all people for help. 

“I know that he’s done bad things. He and I both have. But… I’ll do anything if you can help me save him. Anything at all. You know I wouldn’t ask if I had any other options. I have tried and tried to catch that stupid dragon, and my brother is running out of time. Just- please.” 

Hiccup sighed, bringing his hands up to hide his face. He could just let Viggo die, and solve so many of his problems. And yet- was he really the kind of man to sit around and let someone die when he could do something about it? Whatever he made Ryker promise, Viggo would never stick to. But… oh, Thor. They had already cured Astrid after all. 

“Take some and go.”

Ryker’s bowed head shot up. “What?”

“Take it. We have the buffalord in a temporary pen, we’ll release it in a couple days. Go get the drool and leave.”

Ryker apologized as quickly as he could and practically ran out the door, spirits soaring high. 

*******

Viggo opened with eyes with a sleepy sigh, rubbing at them to clear his view of his surroundings. What was going on? The last thing he remembered was feeling warm and congested, as if he had some sort of cold coming on. Now he felt mostly normal, if a little groggy. 

“You’re awake!” Ryker’s strong arms were suddenly wrapped around Viggo, and the younger Grimborne smiled, still slightly confused. “Brother I… I was worried that I was too late to save you.” Ryker chuckled, tears of happiness running down his face. “I thought that this sickness would take you, and that I would never see you again.”

Putting together the pieces of what must have happened, Viggo tried and failed to maintain his gruff composure, finding himself shaking in his brother’s embrace. “After everything we’ve been through? I would never go down like that.”

Ryker simply pulled Viggo closer, hugging him so tight that he might never let go. “Good. I’m glad.”


	32. Ends and Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of explaining- in this one, Viggo and Ryker are very young children. This is my theory of them losing their parents, how they ended up on their own. So if you don’t like sad parts feel free to skip this bit, it likely won’t be mentioned again XD have fun!

Neither of them knew what started the fire. They were too young after all, so young that they were already in bed when the flames started to lick around the edges of their bedroom door. Ryker was woken by the choking smoke filling the room, and his screams for his parents brought no reply.

So with his tiny child’s body shaking with fear, Ryker woke up his infant brother, carrying the crying baby out of the room, through the dark and orange-cast hallways. Their parents room was an inferno already, a gaping maw of flame and heat. 

Viggo clung to him, little baby fist in his mouth, as Ryker ran on short child’s legs, running and running until he finally reached the deck of the ship. 

Adults! 

Ryker grabbed a passing sleeve, shouting through his tears. He can’t remember the adult’s face, only the shock and shame on it. Tough hands seized him, someone lifting Viggo away from him.

And then they were in a lifeboat, drifting away from their burning ship. Drifting into the dark seas with a single candle to cling to. And when the candle ran down?

It was two small children, alone in a dark, uncaring, cruel world. 

Years later, Ryker still woke up sweating with visions of the night of his parents’ deaths in his head. Viggo was too young at the time to remember it, and Ryker wished he could forget. But that would never happen as long as he would live… 

So whenever the night terrors came, Ryker crept out of his room and opened Viggo’s just a crack. He watched his brother sleep, and knew that the horrors he remembered were all worth remembering, since Viggo was safe. 

And they would be okay.


End file.
